I just found this page from a search. What is it?

If you set some options above and click "List" you will see a list of channels available on the UK digital terrestrial television service (DTT aka DVB-T aka (although not technically correct) Freeview). You can see channels that are expected to launch, blank, widescreen etc for anywhere that currently officially receives UK DTT. You can also view old information via the history link on the left-hand navigation bar.

Hmm, I thought this was regionalised, but I'm seeing channels I know I can't get?

The default region is a generic UK-wide (actually British Isles-wide) region which contains the "most popular" channel for each LCN in use. You need to click on the [Change] link to set or reset your region (there is also some basic geolocation functionality - see next question). You can drill down into the region structure as much as you like - usually the country level is sufficient (although it will go down as far as targetted areas for local TV in some cases) - and when the correct region is displayed in the top Region: section, click [Use] to set that region. [Save] will additionally store it in a cookie for future visits and [Cancel] takes you back to the list as it was before you started changing the region. If you start getting italicised codes within your region name, something has gone wrong and you should re-select your region (this often happens with historic data, but does not necessarily affect the results).

Why is the site requesting my location? Why if I allow it does it show me an irrelevant transmitter?

There is some basic ability to determine the most likely transmitter for your location, which is triggered when visiting the main page with no cookie set. If sharing your location the main page will refresh to this transmitter. This is not a transmitter predictor by any means - it ignores terrain, for starters.

What are the colours in the region list?

Red is for regions, blue is for transmitters and green is for targetted local areas.

What does "show on map" do?

It shows the currently-selected transmitter, and its relays, on a map.

Some regions aren't actual regions, or even transmitters?

Regions is the list of regions (or transmitters) that the channel has been assigned to. This does not always correspond directly to where a particular channel is broadcast - eg. a multiplex such as NImux could have channels assigned to the whole of the UK, because the regions assigned to the multiplex itself limit the visibilty of these channels to only NI.

Some of the regions shown are actually groups of regions. Things like "ITV plc regions" group together multiple locations in a way that the usual country/region grouping can't. Clicking "expand" will show the full list of sites that the group relates to.

Why create an interactive channel list?

We were missing a channel list that didn't include "Channel 4 (in Wales)" and other regional complications. Even the postcode checkers often can't tell you whether you will get S4C or BBC Alba. We also wanted a simple way of collating the ever increasing information on new channels and enhancements. It was a relatively straightforward thing to do, so we did it.

What are "LCN" and "Mux"?

LCN is Logical (or Local) Channel Number. This is the number your receiver assigns to the channel.
Mux is short for multiplex, and is a group of channels broadcasting in the space of one analogue channel. If you have problems with reception, you will find that groups of channels disappear.

What do the checkboxes do?

The checkboxes indicate which multiplexes you are interested in viewing data from. If you do not have reception of a particular multiplex, then you can opt not to include channels available on that multiplex. To find out if you are missing multiplexes, look for channels you are missing in the EPG listing, and note the mux identifier in the mux column. Make sure you have set your region correctly first!

Why are they different colours?

They are pseudo-randomly assigned colours indicating the coverage (with lighter shades for DVB-T2 muxes):

These colours are also used if you "sort by mux" (see below). Viewers on relays will find they need to untick non-PSB muxes (ie. anything not green), unless their relay is explicitly selected (only relays with special properties are listed, usually this means they carry a local multiplex, or are expected to in the future)

What are the mux names?

They change depending on the day of the week and who you ask. They used to be (and still are in some Ofcom documents) 1, 2, A, B, C & D. Post-DSO they are normally known by the mux operator name.

So what are these other multiplexes, "MTN", "NIM" etc?

MTN is the Manchester Television Network, operated by Entertainment Television Ltd (aka Canis Media), the licence holder of the former Channel M multiplex in Manchester. NIM is a shortened version of what is more commonly called NImux (Northern Ireland Multiplex Ltd), the RTÉ mux in Northern Ireland. Finally, CUK is Comux UK, the holder of the local TV multiplex licence.

What does "sort by" do?

Sort by LCN or Mux groups the channels either in the order they will appear in your channel list, or grouped by multiplex. There are a few differences depending on the option you choose.
If you sort by LCN, the colours indicate the service type, with the exception of "not on air" and placeholder channels, which have a pale yellow background. Channels without a multiplex will always show up on this list, regardless of the selected multiplexes.
If you sort by Mux, channels without a home (blank mux field) will not appear at all. The colours are described in the previous question.

Why do channels without mux fields show up in one mode but not the other?

These channels could turn up on any multiplex, so it does not make sense to filter them out of the channel list by LCN. On the other hand, applying the same logic when listing by mux, means they would show up in every multiplex. For clarity's sake, they are filtered out of the latter but not the former. You can of course filter them out by selecting a programme type which does not include "coming soon" channels.

What are the channels in the EPG without LCNs and how do I tune to them?

Any channels in the default view "EPG Listing" without LCNs are test channels that have not yet been allocated LCNs. If you have a sensible digital tuner, these channels will not show up in your list at all, otherwise they will appear on currently blank allocations (usually 800+). If you can't see them, don't worry as you are not missing anything exciting. When they go live, LCNs will be allocated and a retune will pick them up as usual.

The channels in grey text don't show up on my EPG?

Some channels are flagged as "hidden" and show up on the list in grey instead of black text. Hidden channels do not show up in the EPG of some receivers, but may still be selectable by typing in the channel number. Under normal circumstances there is no reason to directly tune to these channels - they are usually just anchor points for data services.

What is the little grid icon next to some channels?

This indicates that the LCN is shared - ie. that a different channel (or a regional variation of the same channel) may broadcast elsewhere on that LCN. A simple example is LCN 4, which contains S4C in Wales, and Channel 4 elsewhere.

What are these IPTV services?

They are MHEG-5 data services provided by Connect TV and Synapse, using Interaction Channel (MHEG-IC) networking extensions present in the Freeview HD specification. Thus to view these IPTV channels, you need a Freeview HD receiver (conforming to the latest spec - earlier ones are not always compatible), a signal on the appropriate multiplex, and a connection to the Internet over broadband. The relevant websites usually have compatibility lists.

Clicky, clicky, clicky?

There are lots of things to click on, you can click on the LCN for extended information, the channel name for the official website, the programme type, certain headings, the "v" to sort and the "x" to remove columns (you can also drag headings to temporarily re-arrange the display). Just click around a bit, it is fairly obvious what the links will show you.

What is "MHEG"?

MHEG (or, more accurately, MHEG-5) is the language used for digital text and interactive applications on the UK DTT platform. If a channel is listed as MHEG, this means it has a significant MHEG layer. "Significant" means there is a digital text service, programme-related interactivity or dynamically updating information available during some or all broadcast hours. For TV and radio channels, the name or nature of the MHEG service is listed in the "Text" field.

I live in the Isle of Man/Channel Islands/Republic of Ireland, can I get DTT, and which region do I select?

Please see the Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories page.

How about DVB-H and other mobile TV services?

Although not strictly relevant, for interesting background purposes (and because it doesn't seem to be summarised elsewhere) we have added a little static mobile services page which is a snapshot of the channels available via the mobile operators at the point they first launched trials.

Can I set any defaults for the display?

You can either bookmark the "link to this page" link at the bottom of the screen, or if you are feeling more adventurous, there is a prefs link where you can set your defaults (choose "save in cookie"), and also change some options not available from the top bar, including columns to display and grouping timeshares. "Save in cookie" obviously requires cookies to be enabled in your browser.

Is there a decent format suitable for print?

You can click on the little printer icon at the bottom of the page. If you need a nice printed list of channels by multiplex, check out the presets page.

Can I use this script on my own website?

The archive is available for download from here. It tends to trail behind the live script by a few revisions, contact us if you want a newer version.

What is your cookie policy?

We set two cookies, "$cookiename" and "$regcookiename". These are only set when saving settings and are entirely optional. In both cases the use of a cookie is clearly indicated. Our partners may set some third party cookies - we have no control over nor access to these.

Any useful links?

Yes. Try Freeview, the Local TV Network, the Digital Television Group and Digital Spy. a516digital has a blog of current goings-on, and a good timeline history of (early) DTT in the UK is onHistory. DigitalUK are responsible for allocating LCNs. Wolfbane have an excellent list of past, present and future transmitters (this is where our transmitter lists originate from), and a transmitter predictor which is better than ours. There are bitrate snapshots and graphs on DigitalBitrate, and a compact multiplex timesharing chart here.

If you do not have Freeview, we recommend using the postcode checker on the Digital UK website as it gives a picture of which multiplexes you are likely to receive, rather than just saying "Yes" or "No". Software update schedules are available on DTG's website (see hidden channels)

I've found a problem/inaccuracy/obvious wrongness - who do I contact?

Send your complaints etc to the webmaster.

Any errors, omissions or other problems should be reported by email. We are not responsible for the content of external sites.